COMMENTARY BY DON "GUNNY" INNS, US VETERAN OF BEIRUT
MONDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2001
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Commentary: America's Longest War
By Don "Gunny" Inns

Long before Mideast madness hit Manhattan Islamic extremists declared war on the United States. On October 23, 1983, our Marine barracks in Beirut was truck bombed. Two hundred forty-one U.S. servicemen were killed. The bombing was an act of war using terrorism as a weapon of mass destruction. President Reagan vowed, "Those who directed this atrocity must be dealt justice, and they will be."

Despite evidence pointing to Iran and Syria, no punishment was ever dealt - not even a single air strike. Punishment must be certain, swift and severe to serve as a deterrent. I cannot help but think that had we acted in such a vigorous manner to bring to justice those responsible for the Beirut bombing, the so-called war on terrorism would have been waged and won before reaching our shores.

September 11th's tragedy was not an isolated incident. It was a continuation and an escalation of the holy war which was declared on the U.S. eighteen years ago in Beirut. As the time line below shows, we are not at war, rather we have been at war. Source: Ohio.com

Remember the American hostages held by Hezbollah in Lebanon? In a commentary featured in the July 7, 1993 issue of USA Today, former hostage David Jacobsen wrote an essay entitled "Wake up! International terrorism is here." Jacobsen asks, "Are we going to delay responding until a smuggled nuclear bomb is exploded in Washington? Do Americans deserve as much protection as the spotted owl?" Unfortunately, our response during the past eight years had been one of smart bombs sent by stupid politicians.

Like his father, President George W. Bush has assembled an experienced first-class team of national security advisors and is building a credible coalition. But this is not his father's war. It is not a war you can watch on CNN as you go about your normal lives. If normalcy means complacency I hope our nation never returns to normal. This is not, as CNN refers to it, "America's New War." It is America's longest war, for it began eighteen years ago in the shadow of the Shouf on the plains of Beirut, Lebanon. The nearly 3,000 who perished in the most recent attacks were casualties of war and victims of a nation in denial. As former Secretary of the Navy, John Lehman, noted after the attack on the USS Cole, "The truth is inconvenient to the peace process."

Had our nation's leaders, democrat and republican, had the courage and faithfulness of New York City Fireman John Chipura perhaps it would be a good morning in America instead of a period of great mourning. John was at Ground Zero shortly after the initial attack on the World Trade Center. With complete and utter disregard for their own personal safety, John and his fellow firemen entered the burning building. Moments elapsed. The tower collapsed.

John was no stranger to danger or duty. As a young Marine stationed in Beirut he was bunkered in a building dangerously close to the barracks the morning of October 23, 1983. Startled out of his sleep by the ceiling collapsing overhead, John managed to crawl out of the rubble. Dazed but determined, John then assisted in the rescue efforts of the nearby barracks. John never forgot the carnage and always remembered those who came in peace to a tortured, war-torn Beirut, Lebanon only to come home in two hundred forty-one flag-draped coffins. Until the morning of September 11 John was a living memorial to his fallen brothers.

Everything I need to know about Mideast madness, i.e., Islamic extremists, militants, terrorists, I learned as a Marine stationed in Beirut in 1983. They will kill as many Americans as we allow them to. Because, historically, many of those Americans killed were members of our military, and the attacks occurred overseas, those protected here at home ignored this reality. Appearing before a House committee after the September 11 attacks, former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned, "Some of you may find it hard to believe that Islamic militants truly cling to the mad fantasy of destroying America. Make no mistake, they do. Unless they are stopped now, their attacks will continue and become even more lethal in the future."

United we stand. Divided we fall. Last Fall our nation was divided. I am not surprised that Florida was chosen as a safe haven and training camp by one of the suspected ringleaders. As America was preoccupied with counting pregnant chads the evil doers were counting the days and plotting the ways in which to kill us. May God bless America and God help us if we ever allow our homeland defense to dangle again.

The First Duty is to Remember,

Donald G. Inns II
Vice President & Board Member
Beirut Veterans of America

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